Tech giants unite in push to make feds rein in NSA eavesdropping

Apple, Google, Facebook and other top technology companies on Monday took their strongest stance to date against sweeping government surveillance that collects vast amounts of data — but they also urged countries not to react to U.S. snooping by walling off the Internet.

The three industry giants — joined by AOL, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter and Yahoo — stressed in a policy statement published online that “governments should limit surveillance to specific known users.” They also repeated their belief in the need for more transparency around what governments request and why.

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The statement arrives just days after President Barack Obama in a televised interview promised to rein in some aspects of surveillance by the National Security Agency, though he didn’t provide any details. An outside panel appointed by Obama in the wake of Edward Snowden’s leaks is to submit its final report to the president by Saturday.

The NSA revelations have sent tech companies scrambling to restore confidence among users and demonstrate they aren’t willingly turning over sensitive data to the U.S. spy agency. They’re also grappling with an international backlash. While not naming any countries in their statement, the tech giants appeared to caution against proposed reforms in Europe and Brazil, where officials are pushing to boost online privacy protections. Such measures could bring new commercial restrictions for Silicon Valley’s tech giants in key international markets.

Asked for more detail, Google and Facebook declined comment beyond pointing to a news release featuring general statements from top executives. The other companies did not respond to a request for comment.

“Recent revelations about government surveillance activities have shaken the trust of our users,” said Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, “and it is time for the United States government to act to restore the confidence of citizens around the world.”

The Obama administration has rejected some of the reporting on the NSA while stressing the agency is operating within the confines of U.S. law. Congress, meanwhile, is barreling toward a debate next year over the future of NSA authorities — and the tech giants, after initially reacting cautiously to the NSA reports, are increasingly trying to steer the political conversation in Washington over surveillance reform.

In their letter, the eight companies urged governments — not just the United States — to end to bulk collection of Internet data. They expressed support for laws allowing firms to disclose when a government asks for data and what it seeks. And they said surveillance requests should be subject to “reviewing courts” that are “independent and include an adversarial process.” That message appeared directed at the U.S. government, whose Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court currently lacks a public defender, as well as Europe.

The companies also stressed the need for governments to cooperate on agreements over “lawful requests for data across jurisdictions.” That appeared to be a reference to the ongoing push in Europe to rethink the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor program. That system currently spares U.S. tech companies from key European Union privacy regulations, and reworking the safe harbor could create new, costly compliance headaches for Silicon Valley.

The tech giants further urged governments to respect “the free flow of information” — a reference to ending censorship as well as preventing new restrictions on Internet commerce. The government of Brazil, for example, has considered requiring that its citizens’ data reside in servers only located in the country. While the companies’ statement doesn’t specifically mention Brazil, it does make a general point about such requirements. “Governments should not require service providers to locate infrastructure within a country’s borders or operate locally,” the tech giants said.

The coalition of companies on Monday touted its new statement in full-page advertisements running in major newspapers, including POLITICO. Those ads, directed explicitly to Obama and Congress, urge the U.S. government to “take the lead” on surveillance reform.